Round Up

So as I expected I'm ridiculously bad at keeping this a regular thing. Since the lockdown has been relaxed though I've been able to go further afield than normal, and spend more time in different locations.

There's a strange kind of phenomena going on at the local wildlife areas though, with almost simultaneously less people about as they go back to work, and more people hanging out to sunbathe etc. I'm not sure how that sentence makes sense but I hope you know what I mean.

On a visit to Cliffe Pools the first thing I noticed was thankfully a lack of kids zipping about on motorbikes. Although I'm sure they see it as harmless fun it's no good for the wildlife, particularly ground nesting birds, and I'm hoping it hasn't affected the numbers of breeding Lapwing and Avocet too much.

The Marsh Frogs are back in force, these aren't a native species but can be seen (and definitely heard) frequently in North Kent Marshland. Listen out for a loud throaty warble, almost like a Kookaburra, coming from the streams and ponds and you're bound to find them. Striking green and a little larger than our usual Common Frogs, they don't seem to be doing too much damage to the ecosystem so for now are welcome!

As summer rolls around I'm starting to see a lot more passerines, including this handsome Sedge Warbler. Lots of warblers, pipits and buntings are always flitting around the reeds and path edges, and you can usually tick off a decent amount of species.

Cliffe is one of the best places locally to see plentiful birds of prey, with Kestrels, Buzzards and Marsh Harriers, like this female, plentiful. Over winter there are usually Peregrines and Merlins whizzing about, and I've clocked one Hobby there so far this summer.

One thing I am aiming to do this year is improve my Gull ID, especially when it comes to rarities that can be easily missed. Cliffe has a large roost of Black Headed and Mediterranean Gulls on the South Pools, and although similar at first, you can clearly see here the difference, with the Meds at the top having a much darker hood and brighter bill/legs compared to the much more common Black Heads in the front.

I've also spent a fair amount of time near Gillingham, which continues to be a hot spot for Adders if you look in the right places. I've worked out vague territories for a few females that I can now usually guarantee seeing in different spots, and the males tend to cruise about as expected. They're quite confident animals, and don't mind me getting close enough for photos, although they soon let me know if I push my luck, with a quick hiss before they slip off into the undergrowth.

You can start to see the blueing of the eyes in this female, indicating that she's in her shed cycle. Snakes have a transparent scale over their eye instead of a regular eyelid, and when they go through shedding this separates from the new layer beneath. They can't see too well when in this stage and are best left alone as they're likely to be a little nervous and defensive. 

Sure enough the next time I visited I found her old skin near her usual basking spot.

I was lucky enough to grab this male Slow Worm out in the open, and you can really see the blue spots which tend to be a big giveaway of their gender, along with the lack of dorsal stripes usually present on females.

Also of note I spotted a Common Seal splashing about in the Medway, these animals spend more time than you may first imagine in rivers, particular estuaries, and you can often spot them on the Thames and Medway. Another welcome sign of summer, the Cuckoos are calling from what seems like every angle, and Swallows, Swifts and House Martins are starting to show flitting around the fields and marshes.

As per the last post, my photo of the week is again an Adder. They're quickly overtaking Red Kites as my favourite UK animal, they're just gorgeous, if a little understood!

Until the next time! Which I hope will be sooner than this one!